City: it’s all about trophies not money

Why hasn’t United spent big this summer, despite receiving £80 million for Cristiano Ronaldo? Because manager Sir Alex Ferguson won’t “pay over the odds for mercenaries not willing to give their all for the club.” Now who could have the Glazer’s spokesperson on the Asia tour, Teshin Nayani, be talking about? Surely not. After all, the cross-town ‘project’ is all about trophies, isn’t it?

Carlos Tevez
“City’s boss and owner came with a very good proposal.

“They showed me that City has the ambition to be one of the biggest clubs in the world. This made it easy to make the move. Money was never important.”

Estimated wage: £150,000 per week.

Emmanuel Adebayor
“People who think that I have joined City for the money are wrong.

“If I had made a move for that reason then I would have been playing for Barcelona or (AC) Milan last season. They gave me bigger offers than Arsenal did for me to stay.

“I want to win silverware and trophies. That is my ambition. The team has got quality and a manager who knows what he wants and is a nice guy.”

Estimated wage: £170,000 per week.

Mark Hughes on Gareth Barry
“We can offer an opportunity to give players a chance to make a mark in the game.

“It is about understanding where we are as a football club and where we want to go.

“It is an opportunity to be part of something and hopefully in the near future we will be able to win trophies and be one of the better teams in the Premier League.

“It is not about money, it is about making your mark.”

Rafael Benitez on Gareth Barry
“When you are a player thinking of moving to a new club, you have to make sure it is for the right reasons, because, if it is just for money, you may make a mistake, like Gareth Barry did.

“It is 100 per cent clear that it was down to money.

“I have this idea that everyone in football at this level earns big wages and that money should not be the main thing. You have to enjoy your career, strive to improve and look to play at the highest level you can.”

Estimated wage: £100,000 per week.

Real Madrid on Robinho
“We have sold Robinho for reasons of a human nature and for sporting reasons.

“The fact that he has accepted an offer from Manchester City says that he is not going for sporting reasons.

“It’s an important sum of money. For reasons of human and sporting nature, it has been decided this is for the best.

“It’s a decision agreed by all the coaching staff, who understand it is best for the player and for the club.

“He’s a great kid, but badly advised.”

Deco on Robinho
“To leave Madrid to go to Chelsea is OK, but I have my doubts with respect to City.

“We will have to ask Robinho what happened. It’s not normal to change Real for City, only for the money.